First,
when a person accepts Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior the
Holy Spirit comes and “dwells” in that person’s heart.
 Romans
8:9
"Those
controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. You, however, are controlled
not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives
in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong
to Christ."
Second,
when an individual is baptized in the Holy Spirit the Holy Spirit "empowers"
them for being witnesses for Jesus Christ - both verbally and behaviorally.
They
are two seperate and distinct occurrances in the believer's life. So,
NO,
when you were saved you were not "Baptized in the Holy Spirit".
See
Baptism Logic Table
How can I be baptized
in the Holy Spirit?
Ask
Jesus
to baptize you in the Holy Spirit!
Luke
11:11-13
"Which
of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?
Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though
you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more
will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
How Do I Know If
It Is God's Will For ME To Be Filled With The Spirit?
Ephesians
5:18
"Do
not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with
the Spirit."
This
verse is written to all Christians. From this instruction we know that
it is God’s will for ALL believers to be filled with the Spirit!
We
also know from the previous passage in Luke 11 that we are to ASK
God for the Holy Spirit. The key is in our asking. We are not to ask just
ONE time!! We are to keep on asking until we receive! You will know when
you receive the same way the disciples in Acts knew -“For they heard them
speaking in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”
See
Baptism Logic Table
If I asked God to
fill me with the Holy Spirit and have not spoken in tongues - does that
mean I was not baptized in the Spirit?
The
Bible is our standard of faith and practice. It is from the Bible that
we get our beliefs and practices, so when we read the three examples in
Acts, where people were filled with the Spirit and spoke in other tongues,
that becomes the Biblical pattern for us. If a person asks to be filled
with the Holy Spirit they should expect to speak in other tongues as the
Bible illustrates.
Therefore,
if someone seeking to be filled with the Spirit has not spoken in other
tongues, they have not yet
been filled with the Spirit and need to keep asking to be filled
See
Baptism Logic Table
I've gone forward
during many altar calls ASKING to be filled...but I've never spoken in
tongues. My pastors simply tell me to keep trying, but that I haven't been
filled yet. So, do I just need to keep asking (begging God) to give me
tongues?
I personally
only went forward about two or three times and also had people praying
for me and nothing happened. Then I decided going forward might not be
where it was at for me. But, don't stop asking! You see, Jesus told
His disciples to "tary" until they were endued with power. How long is
that tarying supposed to be? I don't know. I don't know why it takes longer
for some people than others to be filled with the Holy Spirit. But I totally
agree with your pastors - keep on asking! Never stop asking!
After
my experiences with going forward I began asking the Lord to fill me with
the Holy Spirit every day in my personal devotions for six months and still
nothing happened. At least I thought nothing had happened. I was expecting
to get something everyone else had. Everyone who prayed over me and for
me and everyone I heard speak in tongues would pray what I called "full
sentences and paragraphs." In other words it sounded like they just went
on and on. During my private prayer times I asked Jesus to fill me with
the Holy Spirit. I asked Him not to let the devil deceive me with anything
fake or counterfit. I also said I didn't want to just be imitating others'
tongues.
What
happened during this six month time period, was that a little tiny phrase
came to my mind. It seemed like a quarter inch long compared to what I
heard everyone else doing. So I thought, well, that can't be it. And kept
asking the Lord to fill me with the Holy Spirit. After that, every time
I asked, that little phrase would go through my mind. And each time I pushed
it away because I didn't think that was it.
Finally,
I went to Hawaii (Navy) and was in a prayer meeting with some elderly ladies.
One of them suddenly prayed in tongues - but guess what, she prayed a little
tiny phrase over and over again. Right in the middles of the prayer meeting
I turned to her and said "Is that all you pray in tongues?" She was startled
and a little embarrased I think. But when I explained to her what had happened
to me she explained that that was all she ever got. She accepted it by
faith and uses her little phrase faithfully. She said she was open to the
Lord giving her more, and occassionally asks for more, but never gets any
more. She trusts that the Lord has given her what He wants her to have.
I was
amazed and we went back to pray. I felt such a pressure, or fullness inside
after that,like I was gonna burst! But I couldn't get myself to step out
and open my mouth and speak. The prayer meeting ended and I went back to
my barracks room. Just as I was going inside a phrase went through my mind
- this time it was a little longer - maybe a "six inch long" size instead
of a quarter inch size :>) but again I couldn't speak it. I thought "I
just can't." Just as clear a thought went through my mind "Why not, no
one is here?" So I whispered it. Again, the thought went through my mind,
"Say it out loud." When I did, I felt so happy! All I could say was "I
got it! I got it!" I ran downstairs and called my fiance in California
and then called the lady who hosted the prayer meeting to tell her.
This
was my story. You will have your own. But it will be personal to you. Because
that is how much the Lord loves you. He is going to give you your own experience
with Him. But you might need to pray where it's quiet so you can hear the
Lord speak to you. Sometimes it's necessary to just tune everyone else
out so you can listen to the still small voice of the Lord. Sometimes there's
just too much "loud" around and the Lord can't get through. But don't stop
going forward, just add private times of prayer when you ask too.
You
said you "ask God" to give you "tongues". If you look at the baptism
comparison chart on our web site you will see that it is Jesus who
baptizes with the Holy Spirit When you ask next time,
begin asking Jesus to fill you with the Holy Spirit. Also, you say you
ask Him to give you "tongues". Don't ask for tongues. Ask Jesus to fill
you with the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit you need, not tongues.
The tongues will come when you are filled with the Holy Spirit.
Please
understand, when you ask you need to exercise your faith too. If, after
you ask, a wierd sounding phrase or jumbled up sounding something comes
to your mind, say it out loud. It isn't enough to just hear it in your
head. You have to speak it out loud! The devil will attempt to convince
you it isn't real or it's fake or even that your copying someone else who
you heard speak in tongues. You have to push past those thoughts and speak
out the strange sounds anyway! The Lord isn't going to give you something
that will harm you.
See
Baptism Logic Table
If I am not filled
with the Holy Spirit with the initial evidence of speaking in other tongues
- does that mean I am not a Christian?
A person
becomes a Christian by faith in Jesus Christ and receiving Him as their
personal Lord and Savior.
Being
filled with the Holy Spirit is for an empowerment to be Jesus' witness
following salvation. The two are entirely seperate experiences.
Never
let anyone tell you you are not a Christian if you don't speak in tongues!
See
Baptism Logic Table
Because I have never
spoken in tongues am I somehow a 'baby Christian' or a 'second class Christian'
?
Christians
who are seeking to be filled with the Holy Spirit, and have not yet been
filled, are not 'baby Christians!' They are also most assuredly NOT
in any way "second class" Christians!
If a person has
led Bible studies with unsaved friends, done street witnessing, and even
lead people to the Lord - how have they done these things if they have
not YET been "empowered" to be a witness? Should they even be "witnessing"
at all?
All
of these things are GREAT! They show evidence of why the Lord is giving
a person like this such a strong desire to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
It sounds like they are a good strong witness for the Lord now. This is
excellent! However, if such a person were filled with the Holy Spirit they
would be even more powerful in their witnessing than they currently are!
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is to make YOU a more powerful
witness than YOU would be without it. Many people who have
never received the Baptism in the Holy Spirit witness.
Logically,
a person who is filled with the Holy Spirit should, in fact be, a more
powerful witness than a person who is not filled with the Holy Spirit.
But how that actually plays out in real life is more complicated. If we
compared a person who has not been filled with the Holy Spirit,
but who chooses to witness and share Jesus with friends, relatives, and
coworkers, with a person who has been filled with the Holy Spirit
but chooses, for whatever reason, not to witness much, it would appear
that the person who was not filled with the Holy Spirit was a more powerful
witness.
Witnessing
without the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is sort of like a person who needs
to cut down a tree in his front yard and has access to a chain saw but
chooses to go out and cut down the tree with a hand saw. |
